Rainy days

Deep inside the Hochobir lies a natural wonder: the Obir-Tropfsteinhöhlen (show caves), a natural monument of the UNESCO Global Geopark Karawanken. The stalactites and stalagmites here are “alive” – they are still growing today, drop by drop. The caves were discovered by miners who once dug for lead and zinc inside the Obir.

A visit is a little adventure: from the ticket office on the main square of the bilingual spa town of Bad Eisenkappel/Železna Kapla, a cave bus takes you up a narrow mountain road to the entrance. Underground, a circuit of around 800 m leads through the halls, with light, sound and multimedia effects bringing the natural spectacle to life. A guided tour takes around an hour and a half in total. Inside the mountain the temperature stays at around 8 °C all year round – be sure to bring a warm jacket even in high summer! A perfect outing for hot days and rainy days alike.

Beneath the Griffner Schlossberg lies one of the most colourful show caves in Austria. It was rediscovered in the last months of the war in 1945 during a search for air-raid shelters and has been open to visitors since 1956. On the guided tour of about 40 minutes you see reddish and yellowish stalactites and stalagmites; at the end, a multimedia journey takes you through the history of the earth. The entrance is opposite the parish church in the town centre.

In the cave, archaeologists found hearths, stone tools and bones of cave bear, giant deer and woolly rhinoceros – people used the site more than 20,000 years ago. The temperature stays at about 8 °C all year, making the cave a good destination for hot days and rainy days. Take a jacket and sturdy shoes. Children usually find the tour exciting.

An adventure you will hardly find anywhere else: riding a mountain bike right through a mountain! In the former lead and zinc mine of Mežica, directly below the Petzen on the Slovenian side, guided tours lead through the old tunnels. With a helmet and head torch you cycle several kilometres underground. The whole tour takes about two and a half hours.

Inside the mountain the temperature stays at around 10 °C all year – so warm clothing is a must even in high summer. Helmets and lamps can be hired; the standard tour is suitable for participants aged about 10 and over. If you prefer something calmer, explore the tunnels on foot, by mine train or by kayak on underground waters. The mine is part of the UNESCO Global Geopark Karawanken.

Beneath the Petzen lies the former lead and zinc mine of Mežica, today the show mine Podzemlje Pece. Part of the old tunnels is flooded – and that is exactly where you paddle a kayak through the inside of the mountain. Kitted out with helmet, headlamp and neoprene gear, you set off in a small group with a guide, first on foot into the tunnel, then for about an hour on the water through narrow passages and underground lakes.

The whole tour takes about four hours, including briefing and changing. Inside the mountain it is cool and damp all year round; a basic level of fitness helps, and you shouldn’t be claustrophobic. The tour only runs if booked in advance, with at least two participants. The meeting point is the visitor centre at Glančnik in Mežica, where the mine train and the tunnel biking also start.

In Bad Bleiberg near Villach, lead and zinc were mined for almost 2,000 years until the mine closed in 1993. Today, on the Terra Mystica tour, you slide into the mountain on the 68-metre miners’ slide, experience multimedia shows on the earth’s history in the tunnels and return to daylight by mine train and a 49-metre shaft lift. The tour takes about an hour and a half.

The Terra Montana (Tue and Fri) takes you two kilometres further into the mountain by mine train, where original mining machines at 14 stations show the miners’ everyday working life – it is better suited to children aged about 8 and over. It is 8 °C in the tunnels all year round, so bring a warm jacket and sturdy shoes. By law, children under 4 are not allowed in, and dogs are not permitted.

On the main square of Bad Eisenkappel, the UNESCO Global Geopark Karawanken runs its hiking and information centre; in July 2026 the redesigned information centre opened together with the Geopark gallery on the Vellach promenade. Here you can get information on geology, hiking trails and guided tours in the geopark on both sides of the border. A good stop before or after the Obir-Tropfsteinhöhlen or a hike in the Vellach valley.

The Bezirksheimatmuseum, usually just called the town museum in Völkermarkt, stands in the Faschinggasse, a few steps from the main square and the Old Town Hall. On around 600 m² over two floors it tells the story of the town and the district: Celtic and Roman finds from the area, Gothic religious art, traditional costumes, old furniture and historic postcards. The Slovenian influences and the shifting borders of the region are also a theme.

The focus is on the Carinthian plebiscite of 1920 and the border fighting after the First World War. Frescoes by Hermann Heller show scenes from the plebiscite, and a separate exhibition is devoted to the Austrian State Treaty of 1955. The museum holds the Carinthian quality certificate for visitor attractions. About an hour is enough for a visit. It suits a rainy day or a stroll through Völkermarkt’s old town.

In the centre of Globasnitz, the Archäologisches Pilgermuseum (archaeological pilgrims’ museum) of kärnten.museum shows finds from the nearby Hemmaberg. During the Migration Period (approx. 400–600 AD) one of the most important early Christian pilgrimage sanctuaries in the Eastern Alps stood there, with several churches and mosaic floors. There are also grave finds from an Ostrogothic cemetery and pieces from the Roman settlement of Iuenna, which gave the Jauntal its name. An hour or so is enough for the exhibition, which makes a good choice for a rainy day.

With the family rally “Geheimnis Iuenna” (The Secret of Iuenna), children and teenagers can explore the museum on their own or with their parents; anyone who finds the secret word gets a small prize. It combines nicely with a climb up the Hemmaberg (842 m): at the top you can see the excavated church foundations and mosaics, and next to them the pilgrimage church and the Rosalienquelle spring. Bring good footwear for the way up.

The Geo.Dom is the visitor centre of the UNESCO Global Geopark Karawanken and stands at about 1,700 m by the top station of the Petzen cable car, in the building below the panoramic restaurant “oben”. The exhibition is about the geological history of the Karawanks, which is visible here across national borders. Children and teenagers particularly like the “NatureGame” in the viewing lounge, where an AI turns you into a plant for the virtual geopark garden, and the VR headsets with 3D experiences.

The special exhibition shows petrified trunks, roots and leaves from the Petrified Forest of Lesbos and uses them to explain climate change. About an hour is enough for a visit; it combines well with a hike on the summit plateau, or makes a good plan B if the weather turns up top. You take the cable car up from the valley station in Unterort (Feistritz ob Bleiburg).

The CineCity in Klagenfurt is the largest cinema in Carinthia. Eight screens show current films, some in 3D, with VIP and premium seats, plus a children’s cinema and regular screenings in the original language. Just the thing for a rainy holiday day or an evening in town. You can buy tickets online as e-tickets. The bowling arena is in the same place, so you can easily combine the two.

The Stadttheater on Theaterplatz is Carinthia’s state theatre. The Viennese firm Fellner & Helmer built the house, which opened in 1910 as a jubilee theatre for the 60th anniversary of Emperor Franz Joseph’s reign. The façade is neoclassical, the interior strongly shaped by Art Nouveau. In 1998 Günther Domenig added a modern extension at the back.

The programme includes opera, operetta, musicals and drama, plus concerts by the Carinthian Symphony Orchestra and plays for children – over 200 performances per season. The season runs from September to June, with a summer break in July and August. For guests in September, an evening at the theatre is a nice addition to a day in Klagenfurt. In summer, too, the façade and the theatre park are worth a look when you are out in the old town.

The Landhaus on the Alter Platz is a 16th-century Renaissance building, and the Carinthian state parliament still meets here today. After a fire in 1723, Josef Ferdinand Fromiller, Carinthia’s best-known Baroque painter, redesigned the Großer Wappensaal (great hall of arms). Its walls are covered with more than 665 coats of arms of the Carinthian estates, the noble families and dignitaries who had a say in running the land at the time. There are also murals of historical scenes and a large ceiling fresco. The hall is also home to the Fürstenstein (Prince’s Stone), one of the oldest legal monuments in Europe.

In the entrance area, the interactive exhibition “Tor zur Demokratie” (Gateway to Democracy) is aimed mainly at young visitors. About half an hour is enough for the hall itself. That makes it a good choice for a rainy day or an easy add-on to a stroll through Klagenfurt’s old town. On a guided tour you also get to see the Kleiner Wappensaal with murals by Fromiller, where the state parliament still meets today, the plenary chamber with frescoes by Switbert Lobisser, and the Kolig Hall (Koligsaal).

When it rains in southern Carinthia, the indoor area of Minimundus in Klagenfurt is a good plan B for families. Across around 1,500 m² on two floors you will find a 4D cinema, a model railway layout, interactive globes, an ISS station with live images of the Earth from space, a Mini Cooper ride, a cartoon station for drawing your own comics, a big slide and a 270-degree video box on the Titanic. Many of the stations are meant to be tried out, so children and teenagers are kept well occupied.

The indoor area belongs to the miniature park and is included in the same ticket. So a visit is easy to split: when the showers stop, head outside to the roughly 150 models of famous buildings at a scale of 1:25. Allow two to three hours for both together. The building is step-free via lift and ramp, and there is free parking right in front of the entrance. The restaurant has a large sun terrace.

Right next to Minimundus in Klagenfurt’s Europapark stands the planetarium, which was renovated in 2026, renamed Miniversum and reopened in July 2026. Under the dome, new digital projection technology shows the starry sky, planets and journeys through space; the shows last about half an hour and are in German. There is room for around 80 visitors.

The Miniversum is a good choice for a rainy day with school-age children, ideally combined with Minimundus or a walk in the Europapark. You get tickets and combined tickets at the Minimundus ticket office, where the fixed show times are also posted. Seats cannot be reserved; be at the entrance 5 to 10 minutes before the start, as nobody is let in once the show has begun.

The indoor play centre (Indoor-Spielehaus) belongs to the Walderlebniswelt near St. Kanzian and is the alternative when the weather doesn’t play along. On around 500 m², children can let off steam in the softball arena, on the roller slide, climbing elements, trampolines and on the football pitch; the very youngest have their own separate toddler area. You can also book the VR attraction “Yullbe Go”. Two to three hours is about right for a visit.

Admission to the play centre is included in the Walderlebniswelt ticket, so on fine days you can combine indoors and outdoors. In the adjoining restaurant parents can eat and drink in peace and watch their children on screens. Pack non-slip socks and a water bottle for the children.

In the tennis centre in Bad Eisenkappel there is a small bouldering hall: you climb without a rope, low enough to jump down onto the mats, and the routes range from easy to challenging, so even small children can join in. It’s a good alternative when the weather isn’t right for the climbing crag or a mountain hike. Fixed opening hours are not published – call the tourist office beforehand. Bring sportswear and clean trainers or climbing shoes.

At the CineCity on the eastern edge of Klagenfurt there are 20 bowling lanes with Spark technology: while you play, animated graphics and games run across the lanes. Children love it too. A good plan for a rainy day or an evening with family or friends, and easy to combine with a trip to the cinema. Book your lanes online in advance – evenings and weekends are often busy.

In the Südpark shopping centre on the southern edge of Klagenfurt you’ll find the small games arcade Play Planet. Older children compete at the air hockey table, on the “Super Bikes 3” motorbike simulator or at the Nerf shooting machine, while the little ones ride a submarine, digger or train. That is plenty for an hour of variety on a rainy day, for example combined with some shopping or a visit to Klagenfurt.

The JUMP DOME on the edge of Klagenfurt is a trampoline hall with more than 5,000 m² of space. In the free-jump area you bounce on lots of connected trampolines, and there is also a Ninja Warrior course, wall running, wave trampolines, a balancing area and a jump tower with a landing in the foam pit. Children up to 8 have their own Kids Playground with soft play and a slide.

Expect one to two hours of jumping – it’s more tiring than it looks, so bring comfortable sports clothes and something to drink. The non-slip JUMP DOME socks are compulsory; you buy them on your first visit and reuse them afterwards. A café area invites you to take a break, and parking is free.

In a hall in the Bären industrial park in Feistritz im Rosental, a 450-metre indoor kart track winds through four sections of the building. You drive quiet electric karts with no exhaust fumes, with up to eleven karts on the track at once. You can book free practice in sessions of 10, 20 or 30 minutes, or a race package with practice laps followed by a race – also available as a children’s race.

Children aged 4 and over ride in a two-seater together with an adult, and the youngest have their own track; children can drive on their own once they are 1.35 m tall. Because the track doesn’t depend on the weather and is open until 22:00, it is a good choice for a rainy day or an evening out. Reserve a 30-minute slot online and arrive at least 20 minutes early. Minors without a parent or guardian present need a signed liability waiver.

In a hall on the industrial estate in Wolfsberg, Kartsport Friesacher runs an indoor karting track, plus a laser tag arena and steel-tip darts. Depending on the package, you drive a short practice session or a mini race with qualifying, with electronic timing. For children aged 4 to 8 there are special mini karts which they drive only among themselves – so the little ones get their turn safely too.

Laser tag is played in 15-minute rounds and can be combined with a kart session as a combo package; allow one to two hours for a visit. Because everything takes place indoors, the hall is a good plan B for a rainy day on holiday in the Lavanttal, and combines well with a stroll through Wolfsberg’s old town.

The Alpine Club’s indoor climbing centre in Wolfsberg is one of the largest in Carinthia. You can rope-climb and boulder there; hire equipment (rope, harness, climbing shoes, belay set) is available on site, and there are special rates for children up to 14 and for families. A good choice for a rainy day – however, the website gives no opening hours for June to August, so in high summer be sure to phone ahead.

Hotel Mori on the Kleinsee also opens its spa area of around 1,000 m² to guests who are not staying there. You can just use the pool area with its indoor and outdoor pools, or also the saunas and relaxation rooms, with a breakfast buffet or a light lunch if you wish. A good idea for a rainy day or a quiet afternoon outside the high season.

The Kärntner Badehaus on the Ostuferstraße is a public sauna house right next to the lido on the Klopeiner See. There are several saunas, including a bio sauna and a Swiss stone pine sauna, a brine steam bath, a snow sauna for cooling off and a lake sauna, plus a heated outdoor infinity pool. The whole house is textile-free, and entry is from age 16 only. Ideal for a cool evening or a rainy day.

The Vivea Gesundheitshotel in Bad Eisenkappel, the former spa centre, also opens its wellness area to day guests. You can swim in the outdoor pool, heated all year round, and in the indoor pool, relax in the whirlpool and, from early afternoon, move on to the sauna area with a Finnish sauna, a Swiss stone pine bio sauna, a brine sauna, an aroma steam bath and an infrared cabin. Relaxation rooms and a pond in the garden round things off.

As the number of day guests is limited, register in advance by phone or e-mail. You can hire a bathrobe and towels against a deposit, but it is more convenient to bring your own. Lunch or dinner in the hotel restaurant can be booked as an extra. A good plan for a rainy day, and easy to combine with a walk along the Vellach promenade in the village.

The municipal indoor and outdoor pool in St. Veit an der Glan is a good choice for rainy days and for families planning a whole day at the pool. Indoors there is a sports pool, warm pools with massage jets and a separate children’s area, plus a sauna area, relaxation rooms and a restaurant. The indoor pool is open all year: in summer daily from 9:00 to 20:00, from October to April until 22:00.

From May to September the outdoor pool is open too: with a sports pool and a non-swimmers’ pool, a leisure pool with an island, children’s slides and a slide and diving area with a 65-metre slide and a speed slide. Expect to spend half a day to a whole day. On weekdays during term time the indoor pool is often booked for swimming lessons, so it is worth ringing ahead. Parking is free.

The KärntenTherme in Warmbad-Villach is the largest thermal spa in Carinthia and is fed with thermal water from its own springs. In the fun area you’ll find tube slides, the Crazy River, an outdoor water playground and a baby zone, plus a 25-metre sports pool, outdoor pools and relaxation pools. Adults aged 16 and over can add the sauna world with hammam and a rooftop whirlpool.

The spa is ideal for a rainy day with children – allow half a day to a whole day. You drive along the motorway past Klagenfurt to Villach; Villach-Warmbad railway station is close by. There is a self-service restaurant on site; it’s best to bring your own bath towels and bathrobe.

At the Kurzentrum Warmbad-Villach you bathe directly above the spring. The thermal water, at 25 to 29 °C, rises at the foot of the Dobratsch through the gravel floor of the pool and fizzes against your skin in tiny bubbles. The pool measures 25 by 15 metres, and thanks to the natural inflow all the water is replaced about every three hours. The Romans already used the springs of Warmbad.

For a thermal bath the water is on the fresh side. It is ideal for calm swimming and relaxing, and less so for children who want to splash about. For families and on rainy days, the neighbouring KärntenTherme with slides and a sauna area is the better choice. Allow two to three hours, plus a drive of around an hour on the motorway. Bring your own swimwear and flip-flops.

At the foot of the Dobratsch, in the woods above Warmbad Villach, the Maibachl emerges as a natural overflow of the Warmbad thermal springs. The water, at around 28 to 29 °C, collects in two small pools about a metre deep that bathers have dammed up with stones – you sit or float, with nothing but forest all around. The Maibachl has been a protected natural monument since 2005.

The spring only flows at times, though: mainly when the snow melts on the Dobratsch in spring and after prolonged heavy rain; in summer the stream bed is often dry. So before you set off, ask at the Hotel Warmbaderhof whether there is water at the moment. From the car park at the Warmbad spa centre it is about a ten-minute walk. There are no changing rooms or other facilities – a simple, free nature experience for the curious and for thermal-bath fans.

In the centre of St. Kanzian, on the corner of Kirchweg and Klopeiner Straße right next to the Kirchenwirt, stands an old telephone box that is now an open bookcase. You can leave a holiday book you have finished and take another one. It costs nothing and you don’t need to sign up. Good for a quick stop if you are in the village anyway.

The Südpark in the south of Klagenfurt is the shopping centre for a rainy day or bigger shopping trips: around 70 shops, from fashion (including H&M, New Yorker, Fussl) to opticians and electronics, plus a large Billa Plus supermarket and six places to eat. For children there is a play corner on the first floor, and on the first Wednesday of the month at 15:30 there is a free Punch-and-Judy show (Kasperltheater). You can park in the underground car park or on the parking deck.

The shopping centre on the Heuplatz lies right on the edge of Klagenfurt’s old town. Under one roof you will find fashion, shoes, a chemist’s, electronics and several cafés and restaurants. On a rainy day a shopping trip here combines well with a walk to the Alter Platz and the Lindwurm fountain. Dogs are welcome, and toilets and entrances are step-free.

ATRIO in the Villach district of Warmbad is one of the largest shopping centres in Carinthia – a good option for a rainy day, or for some shopping combined with a visit to Villach. Under one roof you’ll find a large Interspar, fashion and shoe shops, chemists and 14 restaurants and cafés. Allow two to three hours for a relaxed shop; parking is free in around 2,000 wide spaces.